Chapter 125: Chapter 125 Meeting With The Guest 9

"Move!"

The trolley immediately rolled toward the emergency room at full speed, surrounded by doctors and nurses who continued assessing Maddison’s condition while running alongside her.

Beta Felix stood frozen outside as the doors swung shut behind them.

For the first time since the crisis began, there was nothing he could do.

A nearby warrior approached and handed him a towel along with a fresh set of clothes. Only then did Felix become aware of how terrible he looked. Blood stained his arms, chest, and back, while sweat soaked his body from exertion and stress.

Yet he couldn’t bring himself to leave.

Not even for a moment.

Instead of going to a changing room, he simply remained where he was in the hallway. Using the towel, he hastily wiped away the blood and sweat clinging to his skin before putting on the fresh clothes right there in the open.

His eyes never once left the emergency room doors.

The blood on his body could be wiped away.

But the fear gripping his heart remained.

All he could do now was wait and pray that neither the Luna nor the unborn pup would be lost before Alpha Nathan woke up.

"Beta, what should we do?" the warrior asked anxiously, unable to remain still as he shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "What if something happens to the future heir... and the future Luna of the pack?"

"Fuck off!"

Beta Felix’s furious growl echoed through the hallway, causing the warrior to flinch and immediately take several steps back. The Beta’s eyes flashed with irritation and barely restrained rage as he glared at the man.

The last thing he needed right now was someone voicing the very fears already tormenting him.

Did the warrior think he hadn’t considered it?

Did he think those possibilities weren’t already tearing through his mind every second?

Every mention of Maddison’s condition only made the crushing weight on his shoulders feel heavier.

The warrior quickly retreated, not daring to say another word.

Meanwhile, Felix dragged a hand through his hair and continued pacing relentlessly outside the emergency room. Back and forth. Back and forth. His footsteps echoed through the corridor as his thoughts spiraled further into darkness.

The more he thought about it, the more guilt gnawed at him.

Maddison’s protection should have been his responsibility from the very beginning.

The moment Nathan lost control and descended into a frenzy, Felix should have ensured that the Luna remained far away from the danger zone. No matter what happened, he should never have allowed her to get close enough to be injured.

Yet he had failed.

And now they were paying the price.

If anything happened to Maddison...

If anything happened to the unborn heir...

The blame would fall squarely on his shoulders.

Felix stopped pacing for a moment and braced both hands against the wall, lowering his head as his jaw clenched painfully tight.

There was no escaping responsibility for this.

No excuses.

No explanations.

No one else to blame.

And perhaps the most terrifying thought of all was knowing what would happen when Nathan eventually learned the truth.

Felix had served his Alpha since childhood. He knew Nathan better than almost anyone.

If the Luna or the pup suffered irreversible harm because of today’s events, Nathan would not care about explanations, intentions, or circumstances.

The enraged Alpha would only see the outcome.

And Felix had little doubt that when that day came, Nathan would tear him apart with his own hands.

Yet even that possibility felt insignificant compared to the dread currently gripping his heart.

For now, all that mattered was the emergency room doors in front of him.

And whether the people behind them could save Maddison and her child.

「Back To Ashley’s Side...」

Knock... Knock... Knock...

"Come in."

Gideon’s cold, indifferent voice reverberated through the private room. A second later, the restaurant manager pushed the door open and respectfully stepped aside to allow six men to enter.

Three of them were immediately guided toward the chairs opposite Gideon, while the remaining three silently pulled out the seats for them before taking their places a short distance beside them. It was obvious who held authority among them.

The first three were the businessmen Gideon had agreed to meet, while the others were merely their assistants.

Seated beside him, Ashley quietly observed the newcomers, her gaze following each of them as she subtly assessed their appearances and bearing. In contrast, Gideon remained completely unfazed. He leisurely lifted his teacup and took a slow sip without even glancing in their direction, as though their presence alone wasn’t worth his attention.

Yet despite his seemingly indifferent demeanor, a portion of his attention remained fixed on Ashley. From the corner of his eye, he watched her every movement, every shift in expression, and every flicker of curiosity in her eyes.

Ordinarily, Gideon possessed little patience. Making him wait, even for a single minute, was enough to sour his mood, and countless potential collaborations had been terminated simply because someone had wasted his time. Such disrespect was something he never tolerated.

But today was different.

Because Ashley was beside him.

To his own surprise, the irritation that would normally simmer beneath his skin had been reduced to almost nothing. The usual restlessness and violent agitation lurking within him felt distant, muted.

Deep down, a selfish part of him even wished this meeting would drag on a little longer if it meant preserving the strange tranquility surrounding him.

He had never experienced anything like it before.

His wolf, Xiberius, was still as troublesome as ever, constantly pestering him inside his mind with endless thoughts about Ashley. Yet even that was preferable to the alternative. Much preferable.

Because for years, Gideon’s mind had been plagued by something far worse.

The curse.

Ever since it had been placed upon him, darkness had taken root within his soul. Invisible demons constantly whispered in his ears, urging him toward violence, bloodshed, and madness. They never truly disappeared. At best, they merely grew quieter before returning with greater ferocity.

Peace had become a foreign concept to him.

Softness, warmth, serenity — those were luxuries he had long forgotten.

Instead, the world knew him by a different title.

A monster.

A bloodthirsty madman.

And Gideon had never once denied it.

Because it was the truth.

At least, it had been until Ashley unknowingly stepped into his life and began accomplishing what no healer, no priest, and no amount of willpower had ever managed to do.

She silenced the darkness.

Even if only for a little while.

But now, merely sitting beside Ashley, Gideon realized something he had never expected. Yes, her scent still intoxicated him, wrapping around his senses like an irresistible drug. His attraction to her remained as fierce as ever, igniting primal urges that threatened to consume both his mind and body whenever she was near.

Yet, alongside that overwhelming desire, he noticed the darkness within him, the restless demons that constantly clawed at his sanity and fueled his violent instincts, seemed unusually quiet.

They were not gone, but slumbering, subdued in a way he had never experienced before. For the first time in years, perhaps ever, a deep sense of serenity settled over him, soothing the chaos that had always raged beneath his skin.

The feeling was so foreign that it left him unsettled. For what felt like the hundredth time that day, he turned inward and questioned his wolf. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

"Are you absolutely sure she isn’t our fated mate, Xiberius?"

"Are you growing senile or something?" Xiberius snapped in annoyance. "Have you forgotten that we’re never supposed to have a fated mate? And even if, by some impossible miracle, we did, wouldn’t I have noticed it from the very beginning? You confirmed it yourself, there’s no mate bond connecting us to her. No thread. And although there’s a pull, but that was all there is to it."

The wolf’s irritation was understandable.

For the first time in years, Xiberius was finally experiencing a semblance of peace. The relentless darkness that had haunted both it and Gideon had quieted considerably in Ashley’s presence, allowing it to relax in ways it had almost forgotten were possible.

All Xiberius wanted was to enjoy the moment, bask in the soothing scent that lingered around Ashley, and perhaps drift into one of those rare, pleasant dreams where it could freely indulge the desires it constantly kept restrained.

Unfortunately, Gideon seemed determined to ruin that.

Ever since they had met Ashley, he had asked the same question over and over again, each time with increasing suspicion, as if hoping the answer would somehow change.

As a result, despite the absence of the maddening whispers that normally plagued it, Xiberius still found itself annoyed. Its temper flared as it glared at Gideon from within their shared consciousness.

After all, the reason it was usually so irritable and volatile wasn’t entirely its fault.

Because the demons born from the curse were constantly tormenting both Gideon and Xiberius.